NBA Fantasy

Biography

Background

2013-14 SEASON: Appeared in 76 games (75 starts) with the Phoenix Suns, averaged a career-high 20.3 points along with 5.9 assists, 3.2 rebounds and 1.4 steals in 35.1 minutes... Missed game at San Antonio on Apr. 11 with a left ankle sprain…. Scored 19 of his team-high 26 points in the second quarter of win vs. Oklahoma City on Apr. 6… Had ninth 30+ point game of the season with 32 points (11-17 FG, 5-9 3FG) vs. New York on Mar. 28… Scored team-high 25 points in addition to seven rebounds and six assists at Washington on Mar. 26… Scored career-high 40 points (14-21 FG, 9-11 FT) with 25 points coming in the second half vs. New… Orleans on Feb. 28. Became first Suns player since March, 2010, to score 40+ points in a game… Scored then career-high 35 points (14-20 FG, 5-8 3FG) vs. Houston on Feb. 23, including 19 points (77FG, 5-5 3FG) in the second quarter and 25 points in the first half… Scored 21 points and had season-high 14 assists at Denver on Feb. 18… Career-long streak of seven straight games with 20+ points ended with 15 vs. Miami on Feb. 11… Scored then career-high 34 points on 13 field goal attempts (10-13 FG, 6-7 3FG, 8-10 FT) and had 10 assists for sixth double-double and sixth game with 30+ points of season vs. Golden State on Feb. 8… Had team-high 23 points (6-13 FG, 9-9 FT) to extend streak with 20+ to six at Houston on Feb. 5… Scored 24 points (9-15 FG) vs. Chicago on Feb. 4 for career-long fifth straight game with 20+ points… Named Western Conference Player of the Week for Jan. 27-Feb. 2 after averaging 26.8 points on .639 FG% and .692 3FG%; second career POW honor for Dragic (with Houston in April 2012)… Scored game-high 25 points for fourth straight game with 20+ vs. Charlotte on Feb. 1… Led Suns with 28 points and seven assists to complete sweep of the Pacers at Indiana on Jan. 30… Scored 30 points for fifth game of 30+ of season (9-13 FG, 4-5 3FG, 8-8 FT) at Milwaukee on Jan. 29… Recorded double-double with 19 points and 11 assists vs. Washington on Jan. 24… Scored 21 points on 8-10 FG in win vs. Indiana on Jan. 22 in just 22 minutes of action… Recorded 16th 20+ point game of season (career-high) with 28 points (12-20 FG), seven assists and five rebounds vs. Dallas on Jan. 17… Had fourth career points/rebounds double-double and first in a Suns uniform with 18 points and season-high 10 boards vs. Lakers on Jan. 15… Scored 12 of 26 points in fourth quarter to fuel comeback in 104-103 win at Minnesota on Jan. 8… Set career-highs with 33 points (fourth 30+ game of season) and 13 field goals vs. Memphis on Jan. 2… Tied career-high with five steals and led Suns with 26 points and eight assists vs. Clippers on Dec. 30… Had third game with season-high 31 points (11-11 FT) of season at L.A. Lakers on Dec. 10… Had third double-double of season and second career 30/10 game with 31 points and 10 assists vs. Portland on Nov. 27… Recorded double-double with 23 points and 13 assists at Orlando on Nov. 24… Scored 31 vs. Sacramento on Nov. 20; in bookend performance, scored Suns first 11 points of game and 18 in the fourth quarter… Recorded first double-double of the season with 19 points and 10 assists vs. Brooklyn on Nov. 15… Returned to starting lineup and scored 14 points in 25 minutes at Portland on Nov. 13; left game in fourth quarter after sustaining a cut to the face that required stitches… Came off the bench against New Orleans on Nov. 10 and scored 12 points in 30 minutes… Missed three games (Nov. 5-8) due to sprained left ankle… Scored 10 points in 20 minutes before leaving game with a left ankle sprain at Oklahoma City on Nov.3…. Injury occurred while converting fast break layup in third quarter…. Left game early vs. Utah on Nov. 1 with a right facial contusion. PREVIOUS SEASONS: 2012-13: Signed as an unrestricted free agent to return to the Suns, the team that drafted him in 2008, and then put together the best season of his career… In his fifth NBA season, third full season as a Sun, and first full season as a starter, averaged career highs in points (team-high 14.7), assists (team-high 7.4, 7th-NBA), steals (teamhigh 1.61, 17th-NBA) and minutes (team-high 33.5) in 77 games (77 starts)… One of just four NBA players to lead his team in points, assists and steals in 2012-13 (LeBron James, Stephen Curry, Kemba Walker)… Joined Jason Kidd (1998-99), Kevin Johnson (1990-91, 1996-97) and Walter Davis (1982-83) as one of only four Suns in franchise history to lead the club in points, assists and steals in a single season (steals first recorded in 1973-74)… One of four NBA players to average at least 14.0 points, 7.0 assists and 1.50 steals in 2012-13 (LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Jrue Holiday)… Became just the third Sun ever to average 14-7-1.5 in a season (Johnson, Kidd)… Averaged team highs of 14.0 points, 6.3 assists and 1.39 steals before the All-Star break (51 games) and then saw huge production increases after the break when he averaged 16.1 points, 9.5 assists and 2.03 steals (26 games), all team bests… 9.5-assist average post-All-Star break was the second-highest in the NBA (Chris Paul)… 2.03-steal average after the break was eighth-best in the league… ASSISTS: NBA-best 15 doubledigit assist efforts after the break (26 games) after recording five before the break (51 games)… Single-season career-high 20 double-digit assist efforts overall after recording 15 in his first four career seasons combined… Career-high five-straight double-digit assist efforts (March 16-24)… Had only once strung together consecutive double-digit assist efforts in his career (March 14-17, 2012) before doing so three times after the All-Star break (26 games; Feb. 19-24, March 16-24, April 9-15)… Five times recorded 10 or more assists with one or zero turnovers; only Chris Paul (16) and Deron Williams (7) had more such games in 2012-13… Most by a Sun other than Steve Nash since Jason Kidd in 1999-00… STEALS: His team-best 1.61-steal average was the highest by a Sun since Shawn Marion in 2006-07, highest by a Phoenix guard since Jason Kidd in 2000-01… At least one steal in 60 of 77 games, and multiple steals in 38 games… Most games with multiple steals by a Sun since Marion in 2006-07, most by a Suns guard since Penny Hardaway in 2001-02… Nov. 9-27: Multiple steals in a career-high 10 consecutive games, the longest streak by a Sun since Jason Kidd in 1997-98 (10, Dec. 13, 1997-Jan. 2, 1998)… FREE THROWS: Averaged a career-high and team-leading 4.2 free throw attempts… Free-throw attempt average was the highest by a Suns guard since Stephon Marbury in 2003-04, and Dragic became the first Suns guard to lead the team in attempts since Marbury… One of six NBA point guards to lead his team in free throw attempts in 2012-13 (Walker, Holiday, Darren Collison, Tony Parker, John Wall)… Six games with 10 or more attempts (entered the season with three in his career), most by a Suns guard since Marbury in 2002-03 (15)… Career-high tying 14 attempts on Jan. 24 vs. LA Clippers… SCORING: Double-digit scoring in a team-high 65 of 77 games… Team-high 15 20-point games (8-7 record), 10 of which came at home… Team-high two 30-point efforts (0-2 record); had one 30-point game in his first four-plus NBA seasons and had two in the final nine games of the season for Phoenix… Overall recorded 19 double-doubles on the season, including five 20-10 games (seven for his career), and his first career 30-10 game on March 24… After the Suns’ coaching change, averaged 15.4 points (14.0 before it), 8.8 assists (6.0 before it) and 1.74 steals (1.49 before it)… BEST PERFORMANCES: Made the first game-winner of his career, a two-foot layup with 0.5 seconds remaining against Memphis on Dec. 12, 2012… March 24, finished one rebound shy of his second career triple-double with 31 points, 12 assists and nine rebounds; only player with 31-12-9 in the NBA in 2012-13, first Sun since Kevin Johnson (Nov. 11, 1993)… Feb. 19-24, at least 10 points, 10 assists and two steals in four consecutive games, the first such streak by a Suns player since Jason Kidd (April 21-28, 1999)… Dec. 29, 12 assists without a turnover, his most assists in a zero-turnover game in his career… Nov. 16, first Suns player with at least 22 points, seven assists and two steals without a turnover since Stephon Marbury (Dec. 13, 2003)… Missed five games (0-5 record) due to the flu (Dec. 9), a hip contusion (Dec. 28), rest (March 27-28) and a right ankle injury (April 17). 2011-12: Averaged then-career highs in scoring (11.7), assists (5.3), rebounds (2.5), steals (1.3) and minutes (26.5) while playing in all 66 games (career-high 28 starts)… Earned league-wide attention and eventually a multi-year contract from the Suns in free agency after starting the season’s final 26 games (March 10-April 26) in place of injured starter Kyle Lowry… As a starter overall (28 games), averaged 18.0 points, 8.4 assists and 1.82 steals… Only NBA player with at least those numbers over the full season in 2011-12 was Clippers guard Chris Paul, who was an All-Star starter and First Team All-NBA selection… By comparison, Jeremy Lin, who made perhaps the biggest splash of any player last season, averaged 18.2 points (Dragic-18.0) and 7.7 assists (Dragic-8.4) in 25 games as a starter… As a starter in season’s final 26 games, averaged 18.2 points, 8.3 assists and 1.85 steals while leading the team to a 13-13 (.500) finish, which included an 8-3 (.727) stretch… Earned Western Conference Player of the Week honors for April 2-8 (20.7 points, 8.3 assists, 2.67 steals)… As a starter, shot 49.0 percent from the field, 37.9 percent from three-point range and 83.9 percent from the line… Only NBA players who shot at least that well in 2011-12 overall were All-Stars Kevin Durant, James Harden and Steve Nash… Set career highs in free throws made (153) and attempted (190)… As a starter, averaged 4.4 free throw attempts, which would have led the Suns in attempts per game… Reached double figures in scoring 39 times, including a single-season career-best 13 20-point performances… Dished 10 or more assists on a career high nine occasions, including a career-most eight double-doubles… Posted double-figure assists in a single half in two games… Reached double-figure scoring in a career-high 27 consecutive outings (March 6-April 22), which included 20-plus points in nine of the last 14 contests of that run… Recorded at least six assists in a career-best 24-straight games (March 10-April 21), which ranked tied for the second longest such streak in the NBA in 2011-12 (Nash-40, Rondo-24)… Tallied a career-high 14 assists March 17 at L.A. Clippers, equaling his previous career best of 11 assists in the first half alone… Was his second-straight 10-plus assist first half for the first time in his career… Hit a 20-footer from the corner with :03.0 seconds left in regulation to send the game into overtime March 6 at Boston… Finished seventh in voting for NBA Most Improved Player… Signed a multi-year free agent contract with the Suns on July 19, 2012. 2010-11 Averaged 7.5 points, 2.9 assists and 2.0 rebounds in 70 games (five starts) with Houston and Phoenix … averaged 7.4 points, 3.1 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 48 games (two starts) with the Suns, including two 10-point, 10-assist double-doubles … missed seven games (1/30/11-2/13/11) after receiving nine stitches in left foot following an accident at home … made two starts in place of an injured Steve Nash (11/18/10-11/20/10), recording a season-high 17 points (6-13 FG) and 10 assists without a turnover at Charlotte (11/20/10) … posted 14 points (5-11 FG) and 10 assists off the bench at Dallas (12/17/10) … also netted a season-best 17 points vs. Memphis (12/8/10) and 17 points (5-12 FG) vs. New York (1/7/11) … acquired by Houston from Phoenix on Feb. 24 … averaged 7.7 points, 2.5 rebounds and 2.5 assists in 22 games (three starts) with the Rockets … in his three starts with Houston, averaged 13.3 points, 10.3 rebounds, 8.3 assists and 1.67 steals … on the inactive list for one game (2/27/11) with the Rockets due to flu-like symptoms … had nine double-figure scoring games with Houston and three double-doubles, including a triple-double … made his Rockets debut vs. New Jersey (2/26/11) … was first in the NBA in 3-point field goal percentage (.577, 15-26 3FG) for the month of Mar. 2011 … hit at least one trey in eight straight games (3/16/11-4/1/11) … netted his most points with Houston at New Orleans (4/6/11), scoring 16 points (6-9 FG) off a season-best 4-of-5 outing from 3-point range … made his first start with the Rockets vs. the L.A. Clippers (4/9/11), finishing with 14 points (5-13 FG), 10 rebounds, seven assists and a career-best two blocks … posted 15 points (6-16 FG, 2-6 3FG) in his second start vs. Dallas (4/11/11), adding 10 boards, seven assists and a career-high-trying four steals in a career-most 53:00 of action … recorded the first triple-double of his career with 11 points (4-8 FG, 3-6 3FG), a career-high 11 rebounds and a career-best 11 assists as the starting point guard in a 121-102 win at Minnesota (4/13/11) … scored in double figures in four straight games (4/6/11-4/13/11), matching the longest such streak of his career (1/23/10-1/28/10). 2009-10: Averaged a career-high 7.9 points, a career-best 3.0 assists and career-high 2.1 rebounds in a career-most 80 games (two starts) … missed two games (3/4/10-3/6/10) due to a right ankle sprain … finished a career-best .394 (74-188 3FG) from 3-point range (25th in NBA), which was the fourth highest among all second-year NBA players … shot better from 3-point range as a sophomore (.394) than he did from the field overall as a rookie (.393) … surpassed his scoring total from his entire rookie season (55 games) in just his 33rd outing … had a single-season, career-high 25 double-digit scoring efforts (Suns record: 16-9) … registered the first three 20-point efforts of his career, with the first two coming on consecutive nights (1/25/10-1/26/10) after not tallying one in his first 99 career games … notched his first career 30-point performance at Utah (1/25/10), scoring a career-high 32 points (10-13 FG) off a career-best six 3-pointers (6-7 3FG) … became the Suns first second-round pick to score 30 or more points in a game since Cedric Ceballos on Jan. 18, 1997 … averaged 4.7 assists over the final 23 games of the season … recorded the first three double-digit assist efforts of his career after the All-Star Break, including his first career double-double while starting in place of an injured Nash with 16 points (7-11 FG) and 10 assists at Oklahoma City (2/23/10) … also became the first Suns player since 2006-07 to record double-digit assists in the same game as Nash (11) with 10 helpers vs. L.A. Clippers (2/26/10) … made two starts overall (12/17/09 for Richardson and 2/23/10). 2008-09: In his rookie NBA season with the Suns, averaged 4.5 points, 2.0 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 55 games (one start) … averaged 5.9 points, 2.3 assists and 1.9 rebounds in 14.4 minutes (29 games) following the All-Star Break, which was compared to 2.9 points, 1.7 assists and 1.8 rebounds in 12.0 minutes before All-Star (26 games) … had six double-digit scoring efforts, all after the All-Star Break … made NBA debut in season opener at San Antonio (10/29/08) … scored a season-best 14 points (4-8 FG, 4-4 FT) at the L.A. Lakers (2/26/09) … dished a season-high eight assists at Minnesota (4/11/09) … was also a member of Phoenix’s 2009 Las Vegas Summer League squad. INTERNATIONAL PLAY: Signed to play in Spain with Caja Laboral for 2011-12 … came to the NBA after a four-year professional career in top leagues in his native Slovenia and abroad … spent the 2007-08 season with Union Olimpija in Slovenian, helping lead his team to both the Slovenian League championship and Slovenian Cup … named a 2008 Adriatic League All-Star … also earned 2006 Slovenian League All-Star accolades … made his professional debut with Ilirija in the Slovenian minor leagues before being promoted to Slovenia’s top league with Slovan in 2004-05 … named 2005 Slovenian League Newcomer of the Year … been a member of the Slovenian National Team since 2006 … led his national team in the 2010 World Championships in Turkey, averaging 12.7 points, 3.3 rebounds and 4.1 assists in nine games … has also participated in the 2009 European Championships in Poland, the 2007 European Championships in Spain and the 2006 FIBA World Championships in Japan … member of the nation’s U-20 National Team in 2004 and 2005. CAREER TRANSACTIONS: Acquired by Phoenix in a draft-day deal with San Antonio on June 26, 2008, in exchange for the draft rights to Malik Hairston (48th overall), a 2009 second-round pick and cash considerations … Spurs selected him in the second round (45th overall) in the 2008 NBA Draft … signed on Sep. 22, 2008, after reaching a buyout with Spanish team Tau Ceramica and receiving his official release … acquired by Houston along with draft considerations from Phoenix for guard Aaron Brooks on Feb. 24, 2011 … Rockets picked up the team option on his contract on June 28, 2011. PERSONAL: Born Goran Dragic on May 6, 1986, in Ljubljana, Slovenia … speaks fluent Slovenian, Serbian, Spanish and English … father, Marinko, and mother, Mojca, still live in Slovenia, where brother, Zoran, plays professional basketball … nickname is “Gogi,” which is short for Goran in Slovenia … woke up at 3 a.m. as a kid to watch NBA games, and before being drafted by Phoenix, watched Suns games and his basketball idol, Steve Nash, shown at 4 a.m. in Slovenia … lists Michael Jordan, Allen Iverson and Nash as the players he admired growing up … grew up playing soccer in Ljubljana, Slovenia, but an injury forced him to switch sports at age 11 … parents gave him his first basketball as a gift, which he lists as the best gift he has received … has a 37.5 inch vertical leap … plays soccer in his free time and lists Real Madrid as his favorite club … also plays tennis and calls Rafael Nadal his favorite player … favorite book and movie is The Da Vinci Code … listens to R&B, rap and Serbian music.